Scribd
Upload
67 views3 pages

Irrigation Calculations and Formulas

This document provides formulas and calculations for irrigation systems, including: 1. Conversions between gallons, pounds, cubic feet for water measurement. 450 gallons per minute equals 1 cubic foot per second. 2. Pressure calculations where 1 pound per square inch equals 2.31 feet of water and total dynamic head includes pumping lift, elevation change, friction loss, and pressure. 3. Water and brake horsepower calculations based on flow rate and total dynamic head.

Uploaded by

Jdoe3399
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
67 views3 pages

Irrigation Calculations and Formulas

This document provides formulas and calculations for irrigation systems, including: 1. Conversions between gallons, pounds, cubic feet for water measurement. 450 gallons per minute equals 1 cubic foot per second. 2. Pressure calculations where 1 pound per square inch equals 2.31 feet of water and total dynamic head includes pumping lift, elevation change, friction loss, and pressure. 3. Water and brake horsepower calculations based on flow rate and total dynamic head.

Uploaded by

Jdoe3399
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Irrigation Formulas

Water Measurement
1 gallon = 8.3 pounds 1 cubic foot = 7.48 gallons = 62.4 pounds 450 gallons per minute (gpm) = 1 cubic foot per second (cfs) = 1 acre-inch per hour 1 acre-inch = 27,000 gallons = 1 acre flooded 1 inch deep 1 acre foot = 12 acre-inches = 43,560 cubic feet = 325,900 gallons 1 gallon = 3.785 liters = 0.003785 cubic meters 1 cubic meter = 1000 liters = 264.2 gallons

Pressure
1 column of water 2.31 feet high exerts a pressure of 1 psi 1 pound per square inch (psi) = 2.31 feet of water 1 atmosphere = 14.7 psi = 33.95 feet of water 1 inch of mercury (hg) = 1.13 feet of water psi X 2.31 = feet of head Total dynamic head (TDH) in feet includes: pumping lift in feet elevation change in feet friction loss in feet system operating pressure in feet TDH = lift + elevation change + friction + pressure

Horsepower
Water horsepower (WHP) - power required to lift a given quantity of water against a given total dynamic head WHP = Q X H Q = flow rate (gpm) 3960 H = total dynamic head (feet)
PDFmyURL.com

Brake horsepower (BHP) = required power input at the pump BHP = Q X H Q = flow rate (gpm) 3960 X H = total dynamic head (feet) E E = pump efficiency as a decimal (assume .75 unless known)

Water Application
Application amount (H) inches: gpm 450 H= QT = A acres Q = flow rate in acre-in./hr = gpm/450 T = length of application (hours A = area irrigated in time T (acres) Maximum application rate for outer sprinklers of a center pivot: AR = Q X 122.5 Rxr Q = gpm of sprinkler system R = length of center pivot (ft.) r = radius of sprinkler heads at distance R AR = application rate (inches/hr) X time

Furrow irrigation set size (acres): No. of rows X row width (feet) X row length (feet) 43,560 Approximate acreage covered by a pivot:
PDFmyURL.com

Radius of pivot wetted area*,feet) 2 X 3.14 43,560 *Wetted radius includes radius of end gun Flood irrigation set time: T= A X D T = pumping time to flood a field to depth (D), in hours Q D = depth of flood (inches)** A = area of field to be flooded (acres) Q = flow rate acre-inches/hr = GPM **Allow for 1" additional water for seepage and other losses on newly flooded fields. Maximum economical pipe flow capacities: RULE - Based on maximum velocity of 5 ft/sec.

PDFmyURL.com

You might also like